Posts Tagged: Political Prisoners

During the summer of 1862, Mackinac Island became the home to three men from Tennessee who refused to swear allegiance to the Union. In April, military Governor Andrew Johnson had the three men arrested for their support of the Confederacy and “treasonous inclinations.” Johnson felt that the wealthy, planter class of the South was part of the reason for the war and he wanted the three men removed from Tennessee. Secretary of War Edwin Stanton ordered the three men sent to Detroit until a decision could be made regarding their incarceration.